Paige’s face turned pale, and at that moment, I caught a flicker of surprise in Max’s eyes.

Yes, I knew sign language too, but he had never cared enough to learn anything about me. I looked away, gave a polite nod to the guests, and turned to leave.

Just as I stepped outside the hotel doors, someone blocked my path.

“Lila, do you have any idea what you just did?!”

Max’s face was dark with anger. “Who told you that you could humiliate Paige in public?!”

“There were reporters at the event today! If this gets out, how is she supposed to face anyone again? Who would dare hire her after this?!”

I looked at his furious expression and replied calmly, “Calling it humiliation only makes sense if it wasn’t true. Didn’t you hold her?”

“Max, stop pretending. I know you’re not allergic to her, I saw you massaging her foot.”

Being exposed so directly, Max went silent for a moment, rubbing his temples in frustration.

“So what? Paige is different from you.”

“No matter what, you’re Mrs. Kennedy. Isn’t that enough? Lila, don’t be too greedy.”

In five years of marriage, I had never even received a single hug from my husband. Was that what he called greed? He wasn’t the same man I once knew.

I swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat and said quietly, “You’re right. Wanting too much is wrong. So I’ll fix it. Max, let’s get a divorce.”

Before he could reply, a guest rushed out and accidentally bumped into me, sending me stumbling down the steps.

Pain shot through my leg as my knee split open, and blood quickly seeped through the fabric.

Max instinctively reached out but froze halfway, his hand hovering before he pulled it back.

“Lila, stop making a scene.”

“If you still want a child, we can do another test-tube one. As long as you don’t touch me, everything can stay the same.”

He was about to say more when he suddenly turned his head. Not far away, Paige was covering her mouth, tears falling as she looked in our direction.

“Lila, go back to the hospital. We’ll talk at home. I won’t divorce you.”

Leaving those words behind, Max rushed toward Paige without hesitation. I watched as he pulled her close, his face filled with concern, then took her hand and walked away without even glancing back at me.

I stumbled back into my car, and the tears I had been holding in finally broke free. Max, there was nothing left between us worth discussing.

That afternoon, Kennedy Corporation released an official statement. “If anyone continues to speak badly about Miss Vargas, the company’s legal team will take action for defamation and make sure the offender goes bankrupt.”

When I saw that message, I was standing outside the door of Max’s study. He had always hated being disturbed while working, and that room had long been off limits to me.

“Sign this document.”

He was on the phone, his voice soft and calm. “What do you want to eat after the movie? Okay, I’ll come pick you up.”

Maybe because he was in a good mood, he didn’t show any irritation at my presence. He didn’t even glance my way, just lowered his head and signed his name with quiet indifference.

After ending the call, he put on his jacket and turned to me before leaving.

“Lila, I’m glad you finally came to your senses. I’ll have my assistant send you an unlimited card. Buy whatever you like, no need to ask me.”

“Consider it compensation for falling off the cliff.”

He didn’t realize the paper he had just signed was our divorce agreement.

My eyes drifted to the single bed in his study, where something caught my attention. A small box peeked out from underneath. I bent down, pulled it out, and lifted the lid, then a bitter laugh slipped from my lips.

Inside was a life-sized, realistic doll that looked exactly like Paige. No wonder Max had never let me step inside his study.

It turned out that while I spent countless nights alone, he had been next door, satisfying himself with another woman.

After putting the box back, I ignored his assistant’s call and threw away those ridiculous raincoats and gloves. I didn’t stay any longer; I packed my things and left the house that had been my home for five years.

Just then, a message popped up from a bar owner I had worked with before. He said there was a masked-themed wine tasting that night, with new bottles to try, and invited me to join.

I slipped into the dress Max always hated, the one that showed my shoulders and collarbones. Letting my hair fall freely, the way he never liked, I stared at my reflection in the mirror and felt a strange lightness in my chest.

When I arrived at the bar, the first thing I saw was Paige arguing with a waiter. “The private room upstairs is empty! Why can’t I have it? I want that one!”

The waiter saw me, quickly bowed, and said helplessly, “Sorry, that room is reserved for Miss Chase; she’s our boss’s partner.”

Paige turned toward me, her eyes full of contempt. “Lila, I thought that fall from the cliff would finally wake you up.”

“Max doesn’t care about you at all. He won’t even touch you. Even if you followed us here, he still wouldn’t look at you.”

I didn’t look at her. Instead, I calmly put on the queen mask and said, “Tonight, the drinks are on me.”

“Go put up a sign at the door: this lady and dogs are not allowed in.”

The waiter understood right away and was about to call security to have them removed.

Just then, Max walked in.

“Max, they’re mistreating customers here. I came first, but they wouldn’t let me have the private room. And this woman, she called me a dog and tried to kick me out!”

Max didn’t even look at me. He asked the waiter coldly, “How much did she invest?”

“Five hundred thousand…”

Ten minutes later, Max’s assistant came in carrying two boxes full of cash.

Max grabbed a handful of stacks and slammed them one by one onto my head. “Here’s one million. Take it and get lost. Is that enough for you?”

The sound of bills hitting the table drew everyone’s attention; all eyes turned toward us. The waiter, unable to stand it any longer, quietly reminded him, “Mr. Kennedy, she’s not just a partner, she’s your wife…”

Max let out a short laugh, his tone cold and mocking. “No wonder she’s so full of herself, an acquaintance of Lila?”

In that moment, dressed like I was, he didn’t even recognize me.

“I’m telling you, if Paige wants something, even if it belonged to Lila’s own mother, she’d still have to move aside!”

I turned to leave, but Max’s lazy voice stopped me.

“Did I say you could go? Is that how you run a business?”

“Isn’t one million enough to make you apologize to Paige Vargas? Kneel and bark twice, and I’ll let you go.”

My hands curled into fists.

The waiter froze, shocked by what he had just seen. He had never witnessed something so humiliating before and tried to help me remove the mask.

“Mr. Kennedy, this isn’t right, she really is your…”

Before he could finish, Paige quickly wrapped her arm around Max’s and gave me a mocking look.

“Forget it, Max. Is she even worth a million? Let’s just go get something to eat.”

“Only a lonely old woman would come here at this hour to drown her misery. That private room is dirty anyway.”

Max’s face finally relaxed a little. “All right, do as you please.”

“Tell your boss to throw this woman out. Kennedy Corporation will pay the penalty. If not, this bar won’t open again.”

Without looking back, he left with Paige.

I looked at Max and Paige holding hands tightly as they leaned against each other, and my heart went completely cold.

The bar owner came running after hearing the noise. She was an old friend of mine and started cursing Max angrily, calling him a monster.

She couldn’t understand why I didn’t just take off my mask and make those two lose face.

“What difference would it make if I did or didn’t?”

She stayed quiet for a moment before sighing. “A man who won’t even let you touch him, what did you ever see in marrying him?”

I gently swirled my glass, watching the red wine shimmer under the light. It looked just like the blood Max had once shed for me when he was still a boy.

After his parents went bankrupt, they had no choice but to end their lives.

The old butler, driven by greed, sold Max like a toy. I was the little slave bought by that rich man.

To avoid being poisoned mute, I pretended to be unable to speak and only used sign language. Max stabbed the rich man in defiance and was beaten again and again, left to starve over and over.

I couldn’t stand to watch such a beautiful boy die so miserably, so I shared my food with him every day. He was the only one who knew I could speak.

One night, when no one was around, I secretly set him free. But we were caught, and the rich man almost beat me to death on the spot. Max threw himself over me, shielding me from the blows, and his blood splattered across my face.

That was the first time I ever felt someone treated me like a real person.

Later, his aunt came with people to save him, and the rich man’s house was raided by the police. But we never got the chance to say goodbye.

Still, I could never forget that night, the weak sound of his voice through the pain, saying, “We have to live… grow up… and when I’m older, I’ll marry you.”

I could no longer remember how I made it through all the hardships to find him again, just as Max had long forgotten the little mute girl from back then.

The day I returned with my visa, a group of strangers dragged me to the rooftop of an abandoned building on the edge of town.

Paige’s hands were tied as she hung outside the building, yet she was smiling.

“The main character is here, let the show begin.”

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the hall, and soon Max appeared with his men.

“What are you doing?!”

“Max, Lila is angry because you ignored her to save me that day, and she wants to throw me off! Please, save me!” Paige cried.

For the first time, I saw a cold, dangerous look in Max’s eyes, and it was aimed at me.

He ordered his guards to take down the men and ran straight to Paige, pulling her up without hesitation.

He held her tightly, his face pale with fear, as if she were the most precious thing in his world.

“Thank goodness you’re safe. I won’t ever let you be in danger again.”

It was exactly the same as that time long ago.

As he brushed past me, I instinctively grabbed his hand. “Max, it wasn’t me.”

His face went white. Fighting the nausea that twisted through him, he threw my hand away.

The slap came suddenly, hard and sharp across my face. “Get away! Don’t touch me! You make me sick!”